Job Discussion Forums

[ippollite]

Two friends in the jungle, they come across a lion. The first friend starts putting on his sneakers, and the second one starts laughing...

"what you doing that for? youll never outrun that lion in those!"

"I dont need to outrun the lion" said the first friend, "i just need to outrun you!"

[davelister]

[Harbin]

How about this: the ability to effectively teach English or not?

Like it or not, there are about 3 internationally recognized TEFL certificates and I promise you that people who complete these programs can blow the doors off personality teachers when students give a damned about what they're learning.

[BizLiz]

[Bud Powell]

[quote=

Like it or not, there are about 3 internationally recognized TEFL certificates and I promise you that people who complete these programs can blow the doors off personality teachers when students give a damned about what they're learning.[/quote]

It depends upon the teacher. I've known people like those you mention, and I have also known those who managed to complete the course but still could not teach. Judging by the posts you've written, you are probably among the former. Your intellectual involvement continued after you completed the course.

Personality teachers? I don't like 'em either. I took a course with a Ph.D whom everyone called Professor Puppydog. Graduate faculty and girl students thought that he was as cute as a puppydog. He was, but only half as smart.

[CFTU-Beijing]

There is indeed real value to TEFL training even though TEFL certificates are not now, nor ever were, required to teach in China.

Many foreigners who come to China with no teaching experience nor degrees in education find themselves with teaching jobs for all the wrong reasons, primarily because they speak fluent English, are native speakers, have good looks, or are even entertaining.

It is for these people that TEFL training offers a real chance for them to learn about teaching English properly and based on methodology and lesson plans, not just winging it as they go. Many foreigners obviously have years of speaking English yet have no clue how to teach.

TEFL training also helps real teachers polish and fine tune their English teaching skills. But be warned that many TEFL certificates are not recognized nor accepted internationally and if you do not do your homework, you may end up being peddled some garbage online course or CDs and a worthless piece of paper that only the seller calls a "TEFL Certificate"

[vikeologist]

I'm not sure what the third is.

You have the Cambridge CELTA and the Trinity TESOL. What's the third?

There's actually lots of (level 4) qualifications superior to the above two, but as far as I'm aware they're the two basic ESL qualifications which are broadly recognised.

As for the benefits, obviously if all you want to do is teach in China for a few years for the standard low level salary, then any ESL qualification will do. As for whether people with CELTA/TESOL are better teachers, I certainly think they're going to have a solid foundation and have demonstrated the potential to teach English correctly. But that's sod all use in most Unis.

Anyway, if you want to stay in China teaching for a while and make good money, or want to teach in most other places in the world, then you need a proper qualification. Teaching (English) in China can be a viable, long-term and financially well-rewarded career, and the CELTA / Trinity TESOL are the most common entry qualifications, though not the only route. It depends exactly what you want to do and where you want to do it.

But seriously, what's the third?

[choudoufu]

delta?

[roadwalker]

SIT-Tesol, or something like that? It sounds familiar, anyway. I took an off-brand course, so I rely mainly on my personality.

[A593186]

[Non Sequitur]

[vikeologist]

Ok, look. My view of qualification worth is largely based on the British system.

There are two levels.

certificate level (4)

diploma level (5)

The CELTA and Trinity TESOL are level 4. The DELTA is the level 5 equivalent of the CELTA.

The British Council (and the British government and education system generally) state that a level 4 certificate is valid if

the qualification is externally validated by a reputable examination body
(e.g. a university, recognised examination board or other body with Royal Charter)
contains sufficient supervised teaching practice
(i.e. teaching practice where a qualified assessor observes the trainee teacher teaching real students
and gives feedback on his or her performance; minimum 6 hours for certificate level and 5 for diploma
level)
contains at least 100 hours of ELT/TESOL input

More details here; http://www.britishcouncil.org/accreditation-qualifications.pdf

So when teachers apply to us, if they have, for instance, a qualification from London Teacher Training College, I know that it's equivalent to a CELTA or DELTA. Unfortunately we've never managed to get a teacher from LTTC, because, you know, we're just a bottom level 'xueyuan' and nobody believes that our students are a delight.

So, the SIT-TESOL. I'd never heard of it, but it doesn't look as though it's accredited by anybody. Their homepage is short on details about whether teaching practice is observed, and really the whole British council criteria stuff. It may well be a good qualification, but I'd take some convincing that SIT was the equivalent of a CELTA.

Now, if there's a separate approach in other countries, I'd be interested to know what it is, but bear in mind that a major source of potential income in China is as an IELTS examiner, so it may be worth paying attention to what the British Council regards as valid. Also 2 British (Nottingham and Liverpool) Universities are two of the biggest employers for top level ESOL teachers in the country.

[roadwalker]

Yeah, NS, I'm thinking of ditching the cape. Too much chalk dust! It's like a magnet...

[vikeologist]

[quote="A593186"]

[Non Sequitur]